LATE MING DYNASTY, 16TH-17TH CENTURY

Details

**AN UNUSUAL RHINOCEROS HORN LIBATION CUP
LATE MING DYNASTY, 16TH-17TH CENTURY
Carved in relief on one side with two monkeys leaping atop rocks in a mountainous landscape, and on the reverse with two deer walking on a path on either side of a tree growing from a rock, with a prunus tree growing from another rock below the spout and two further rocks and a pine tree forming the handle at the opposite end, with openwork base
6 7/16 in. (16.4 cm.) long

Special notice

Prospective purchasers are advised that several countries prohibit the importation of property containing materials from endangered species, including but not limited to coral, ivory and tortoiseshell. Accordingly, prospective purchasers should familiarize themselves with relevant customs regulations prior to bidding if they intend to import this lot into another country.

Lot Essay

Compare the rhinoceros horn cup carved with similar monkeys and rocks in the collection of the Osaka Municipal Museum of Art illustrated by J. Chapman, The Art of Rhinoceros Horn Carving in China, London, 1999, p. 182, no. 241, where the author suggests that the monkeys depicted might represent gibbons, which were a popular subject in Chinese art.

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